Coupling-lock.



E. P. KINNE.

COUPLING LOCK.

APPUCATION FILED AUG-26, 1912.

Patented May 18, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

E. P. KINNE. COUPLING LOCK. APPLICATION FILED 11116.26. 1912.

Patented May 18, 19 15.

3 SHEETSSHEET 2.

E. P. KINNE. I

COUPLING LOCK.

Patelited May18;1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

7 To all whom it may concern:

EDMUND P. KIN'NE,v or ALLIANCE, OI-IIO, ASSIGNOR '10 AMERICAN STEELFoUNnR IEs,

OF NEWYORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

COUPLING-LOCK.

Application filed August 26, 1912. Serial No. 716,993.

Be it known that I, EDMUND P. KINNE, a citizen of the United States, andresidentof Alliance, inthe county of Stark and State of Ohio, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Coupler- Locks, of whichthe following is'a specification.

My invention relates to railway car couplers and has particularreference to a novel coupler lock.

Car couplers, like all other devices Wl'llCh are subjected to extremestrains and blows and which must operate, without lubrication,

wear rapidly in service. This wear in a car coupler is most apparent inthe knuckle pivot pint and knuckle lock. This wear tends to permit theknuckle to open to an increasing extent as the wear progresses. It iswell understoodfthat after a knuckle reaches a point in its closedposition at which the inner face of the knuckle: falls outside a certainspecified line, such a coupler is condemned as unsafe in View of' thepossibility of its becoming disconnected from the knuckle of a matingcoupler.

One of the objects of my invention is to construct, a coupler having anovel look so arranged that wear shall be automatically) taken up and atthe same time permit the ready lifting of the look from its position infront of the knuckle tail as required.

My invention contemplates a design of lock which shall have curvedlocking faces,

the curves being struck from difl'erent radii.- To disconnect the lockit is rocked on the curved surface of the shorter radius.

Another object secured by my construction. is in the provision againstcreeping. In'

7 service coupler knuckles work up and down vertically and the upwardmovement carries the lock with it. However, as'the knuckle drops to itslowest position it frequently takes a new hold on the lock thelock beingagain raised as the knuckle is elevated. In my construction it will benoted that if the knuckle raises the lock must also raise and thiscannot occur for the'reason that the look I must be rocked to displaceit. Movementof the lock in line with the vertical axis'of the coupler isimpossible when in normal locked position.

A further object the head and knuckle adapted to cooperate in order torelieve the knuckle pivot pin from pulling strains. These means includeis to provide means on is also provided. Becauseofthis construetion theknuckle is constantly held, when 1 locked, in retracted position and allstrain is removed from the pivot pin.

Specification of Letters Patent. 1 'Patented May 18 1.915. v

My invention w1ll be more readily understood by reference to theaccompanying draw ngs, wherein,

.Figurel is a sectional plan view ofa; couplerconstructed 1n accordancewlth my lIlVGIltlOIl; Fig. 2 1s asection onthe line inlocked position;Fig. 3 is a similar section showing the lock in lockset position; Fig.4-

25-2 of Fig. l,-showing thelooking member is a section. on the line H ofFig. l, showing the lock in its normal'locked position; Fig. 5 is asimilar view showing the lock' on the lockset; Fig. 6 is a similarsection showing the lock in its extreme elevated position and;cooperating with the knuckle thrower; Fig. 7 is a similar sectionshowing an abnormal' position of the lock, wear having. taken place tosuch an extent that the lock, has

meanwhile being held in its usual position; Fig. 81s, a' perspectlveview of one side of 85. dropped to its lowest point, the knuckle mynovel lock, and Fig. 9 is a similar per spective view. taken from theoppositefside. j Referring more particularly to thedrawings, it will beseen that thecoupler,which I is ofthe common Janney type, is composedpivot pin l3, knuckle thrower 14,100k 1'5,

of a shank 10, head 11, knuckle 12, knuckle, l

and lock liftinglink 16: The'couplery h'ead is provided with a hollowinterior arranged; tollaccor'nmodate, the knuckle tail, the Yknucklethrower and locking blockgfThe The knuckle r lockingj ,facel7 ofthe head iscurved on a comparatively long I radius.

tail 18 also has its locking face curved as at 1-9, on aconsiderablyshorter radius. (and;

from a center different from that of the curve 17. The locking block 15is provided curved wall 17, and a curved face 21,'corresponding to thecurve 19 of thevknuckle rangement of curves the lock is narrower d I Iwith a curved face 20,corresponding tothe i at its lower end than at itsupper end and is in effect wedge-shaped. In Fig. 7 the function of thewedge-shaped lock is shown. in that view it is assumed that the partshave become considerably worn and the lock has descended to its lowestposition. It will be understood, of course, that this wearing action hasbeen very gradual and has extended over a period f years but thatconstantly during such action the knuckle has been kept within theproper lines and always been without excessive clearance. An eye 22 onthe top of the locking block forms a connection for the lifting link 16.It will be "notedby reference to Figs. a, 6 and 7 that'the eye islocated considerablyto one side of the center of gravity of the lock.Thus the'tendency of the'link on a'lifting action is to rock or rotatethe lock over the curved'surfaces 19, 21. This releases the lock fromthe co operating curved surfaces I7, 20, and permits its being lifted tofree the knuckle.

The coupler head is provided on its interior with a vertical rib 23,thus forming a guide between it and the adjoining wall I 24 of the head.Within this guide-way a projection25 of the lock is adapted to seat.This serves to guide the lock in its vertical reciprocation. The'forwardportionof the I lock is held, against an abutment 26 o'fthe couplerwall, as shown in Fig. 1. At the rear of the lock and below theprojection 25 I provide a notch 27, which serves as a lo'ckset andcooperates with the ledge 28 formed transversely of the head and locatedatthe beginning of the guide formed by the rib 23. In order to seat thelocking block on the lockset, the eye'22 is located to'the right of thecenter of gravity of the look, as viewed in Figs. 2an'd 3. Thus, as thelock is lifted its lower right hand endwill be tilted inwardly and as itreaches a point opposite the ledge 28, it will be engaged thereby. Thisaction is assured by the fact that the'lock at a point forward of theeye contacts 'theshort arm 29 ofthe knuckle thrower. In order to removethelock from V thelockset, I provide a groove 30 in the knuckle tail,which cooperates with'a projection 31 on the lower front face of thelook. This groove, cooperating with the projection, serves to pull thelock off the lo'ckset during the opening movement of the knuckle-'andtherear of-the lock, dropping below the lockset, will remain at that pointduring both'the opening and'closing movements of the knuckle. In Fig. 6,I have shown'the lock in its extreme elevated position after contactingand actuating the knuckle thrower 14. As shown in dotted lines .in Fig.4, the projection 25 has one wall inclined. However, as the lock israised and freed from the curvedwall 17 of the coupler head, thisangular line will come into coincidence with the rib 23, and be guidedthereby in its further elevation.

It will be noted thatthe curves of the two locking faces of the lock aredrawn from different radii and have different centers from which thecurves are struck. The result'ofthi-s is that as soon as the lock beginsits upward movement, the curved surface of the longer radii is freedfrom contact with the wall. This makes the further upward movement easyas it is without binding action.

In order to secure the freedom of the pivot pin from pulling strains andto obvi'ate clearan'ce'between knuckle-and coupler head in alongitudinal-line, T'provideon the fioor ofthe coupler acurved,'upward-ly projecting lug 32. As shown in dottedlines in Fig. '1,the front face'of thislugis curved as at 33, on a radius coincidentwiththe'pivot pin center. However, the rear wall is curved eccentricallyto'the front wall, as at 34. This lug 32 cooperates with a grooveformed'in the bottom'surface of the knuckle tail, its front andrear-contacting surfaces being curved to correspond withthe curvature ofthe lug. By this means it will be seen that while an even bearingsurface is provided at one side'of the lugand groove whereby blows onthe knuckle are transferred'to thehead in line with the pivot pin,on'the other'sidejthe eccentric surfaces tend to pull the knucklebackward as the wedge lock thrusts the'tail to the rear. Thus a verytight fit is assured. Thi's'could'no't be'accomplished withanon-wedginglock as will be readily understood. The lug and groove justdescribed are on the lower face of the knuckletail. I have provided anadditional eccentric surface on top of the knuckle as best shownin Figs.1, 2 and 3. A rib 35 is'struck up on'the'knuckle tail and is providedwith an ecccntrically curved front face. This front face cooperates witha similar eccentric curved surface'36 formed on the coupler head. Thisactstin conjunction with the lug and groove on the lower surface of theknuckle to maintain the knuckle in retracted'position.

The curves of the different locking surfaces herein shown are onlytypical and may be changed and other constructions modified withoutdepartingfrom the spirit of my invention.

' I claim:

'1. In a car'coupler, the combination of a couplerhead having acurvedlocking face, a knuckle pivoted insaid head, a locking blockhaving a portioncooperating with the curved surface of said lockingface, and means for rotating said lock, the center of rotation'of saidlock falling within the plane of the knuckle tail, substantially asdescribed.

2. In a car coupler, the combination of a said knuckle, and means forrotating said lock, the center of rotation of said lock falling Withinthe plane of the knuckle tail, substantially as described.

3. In a car coupler, the combination of a coupler head, having a curvedlocking face, a

i I knuckle pivoted in said head, said knuckle having a curvedlock-engaging face, a looking member having portions cooperating Withthe curved surfaces on said head and said knuckle, the curves of saidhead and said knuckle having different radii, and means for rotatingsaid lock, the center of rotation of said lock falling Within the planeof the knuckle "tail, substantially as described.

4. In a car coupler, the combination of a coupler head having acurvedlocking ,face, a knuckle pivoted in said head, said knuckle having acurved lock-engaging face, a Wedge-shaped lock, the locking surfaces ofI said lock being curved to correspond to the surfaces engaged thereby,and means for Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each,by addressing the I i Washington, D. O.

rotating said lock, the center of rotation of said lock falling Withinthe plane of the knuckle tail, substantially as described.

- 5.. Ina car coupler, the combination of a coupler head having a curvedlocking face, a knuckle pivoted in said head, said knuckle having acurved lock-engaging face, a Wedge-- shaped lock having locking surfacescurved to correspond with the surfaces engaged thereby, and means forlifting said look from a point removed from its center of gravity,whereby the lock is rocked in the arc of the curves thereof, the centerof rotation of saidlock falling Within the plane of the knuckle tail,substantially as described.

6. In a car coupler, the combination of a coupler head, a knucklepivoted therein, a Wear-compensating locking block, the'contactingsurfaces of said block, knuckle and head being curved, and means for,rocking said lock to disengage the same, from locking engagement, the.center of rotation of said lock falling. Within, the plane ofthe knuckletail, substantially as described.

r EDMUND PQKINNEL Witnesses:

LAURA OARLISLE, J. E. RYAN.

Commissioner of Patents

